


Ballad of the Golden Lion

by kueble



Series: I'll Keep Your Brittle Heart Warm [6]
Category: The Witcher (TV), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Genre: Blood Kink, Blood and Injury, Established Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-14 19:42:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29547414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kueble/pseuds/kueble
Summary: Jaskier plays bait in one of Ciri’s training exercises.
Relationships: Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion
Series: I'll Keep Your Brittle Heart Warm [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2050317
Comments: 4
Kudos: 48





	Ballad of the Golden Lion

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Sugar and Spice Witcher Bingo prompt: Defending a Partner.
> 
> I tagged for blood kink because Jaskier has a moment towards the end. Nothing explicit in this, just mildly kinky descriptions of blood and a small cut.

The mid-summer sun is high in the sky and it’s shaping up to be a fantastic afternoon. Jaskier has his sleeves rolled up to his elbows and would probably unlace his shirt if he weren’t out here with Ciri. He does have a _little_ decency, after all. Ciri is babbling on about different herbs as they walk, pointing out what potions or oils they work for. It’s mostly text-book renditions, but every so often she gets more excited about something, and Jaskier loves seeing her eyes light up as she explains what is so fun about the ingredient in question.

All in all, it would be the perfect day if he weren’t waiting to be attacked.

Ciri’s training has been going really well, but Vesemir has decided that she needs a more practical application. They aren’t blessed with years of training the way the school used to run, and they need to make sure Ciri is at the very least up to defending herself if need be. Though their current strategy involves never leaving her alone, everyone knows life doesn’t always work out as planned.

Lambert - of course it was Lambert - pointed out that Ciri is more likely to get hurt if she were in a situation where she had to put someone’s safety above her own. Geralt had offered himself up as bait, but it was quickly decided that it needed to be someone she couldn’t trust to defend themselves. It was a little frustrating how fast heads had turned in his direction, but Jaskier was quick to realize defending yourself in a scuffle at a bar or running from bandits was not exactly on par with years of witcher training.

And so here he is, the perfect victim.

Well, Ciri had called him her _partner_ before they set off for the day. The plan was to go on a nature hike of sorts and then just...wait to be ambushed. Still, Ciri had been enthusiastic about proving herself, so of course Jaskier had agreed to it. It’s a gorgeous day out, and it’s nice to have an excuse just to wander around with no real purpose.

“Oh! We’ve made it to the orchard,” Ciri squeals out as she races forward to the tree line. The apple blossoms are gone for the year and the branches are full of tiny apples. In a few months, they’ll have a good crop, weather permitting. 

Jaskier quickens his pace to catch up with her near the cherry trees. They’re in season, and Jaskier has spent the last couple of mornings harvesting, but there’s plenty more hanging from the branches. Ciri turns to him as she pops a dark red cherry into her mouth, smiling before spitting out the seed. He’s about to reach up and snag a handful of the tart fruit when he hears someone shouting from behind him.

And then he’s being shoved against a tree trunk, Ciri jumping into a defensive stance in front of him. He presses himself against the bark and tries to stay out of it, because he’s not actually supposed to try and help. This isn’t his test.

Thankfully this is a one-on-one fight, because everyone had agreed pitting three fully trained witchers against Ciri was a bit much for now. They might not be involved, but Lambert, Eskel, and Vesemir circle the fight like the wolves they’re named for, occasionally shouting tips as father and daughter battle.

Ciri is all delicate, viscous grace as she defends him, her sword sweeping in wide arcs and glinting in the afternoon sun. He could write a thousand ballads about the way her hair comes undone, framing her head like a halo as she fights to protect him. Geralt looks every bit as ethereal, muscles straining as their swords clash together.

Geralt doesn’t seem to be pulling his hits, and Ciri’s meeting him with the same fierceness. There’s a beauty in the rage etched across her face, and Jaskier can see hints of the force of nature she’ll grow into. Once Yennefer helps her get a handle on her magic, she’ll be downright unstoppable. Still, she’s young and hasn’t been blessed with a witcher’s stamina. It isn’t long before her movements start to slow and Geralt takes control of their dangerous dance.

She doesn’t give in, though, parries every hit he sends at her. She’s panting and dripping sweat, growling as she blocks each hit, and Jaskier is already composing a song he knows won’t leave the walls of the keep. But the Golden Lion and the White Wolf has a nice ring to it, and he can’t wait to see Ciri’s reaction once it’s finished. 

Vesemir whistles loudly, and the pair stops, grinning at each other before Geralt wraps Ciri in a tight hug. The other witchers move in to offer congratulations and advice, and even Vesemir is beaming at the girl.

The scuffle seems over, so Jaskier just moves to the side while the witchers and Ciri break down the exercise. His arm left forearm stings and he looks down at it, surprised to find a thin line of blood welling up from his skin. It’s nothing horrible - he’s had worse unfortunately - so he doesn’t bother mentioning it just yet. In all honesty, he’s not sure if Citi nicked him while she was shoving him out of the way or if Geralt caught him accidentally while attacking.

Jaskier gets lost staring at the small cut. It’s such a thin line to cause this much of a sting. It doesn’t bleed much, is already starting to scab over by the time he realizes Geralt is talking to him. “Huh?” he asks, blinking slowly at the other man.

“Are you ok? You’re bleeding,” Geralt asks again, and Jaskier nods at him.

“I’m fine, just distracted a bit,” he admits, not quite sure why the cut is getting to him like this. He’s had far worse in his travels, but he’s hyper aware of this tiny bloody line on his tanned skin. The contrast between the bright red blood and his sun-kissed skin shouldn’t be as intriguing as it is.

“It doesn’t look deep, but let’s get you back home and bandaged up anyway,” Geralt says in the same even tone he uses to calm Roach when she’s skittish.

That’s when Jaskier realizes his heart is beating wildly in his chest, but he doesn’t think he’s scared? It’s a weird feeling he’s never come across before. He’s got the same rush of energy buzzing under his skin that he gets right after a good bar fight; like he’s all hyped up and ready for anything.

“I really am alright,” Jaskier assures him. “Not sure why I’m reacting like this? It’s just a little thing.” He trails off and looks at the now dried line of blood on his arm and realizes he’s excited about it, that he likes the way it looks on him.

_Oh_.

He can feel himself blushing and stammers an excuse to Geralt, but the witcher just smirks back at him and all at once Jaskier is aware that he understands.

“We can talk about it another time,” Geralt tells him softly and Jaskier is barely able to agree before Ciri is bounding up to him and throwing her arms around him in a tight hug.

“Did you see that?” She asks, bouncing on her toes as she grins up at him. “I protected you! Not a training dummy in the yard, but _you_!”

“You were brilliant, absolutely fantastic,” Jaskier says with a smile. He hides his injured arm behind her back and starts leading her back towards the keep. She’s an excitable mess the whole trip back, chatting away while the rest of the witchers try their best to offer pointers on what she needs to work on for next time.

Jaskier brushes his fingertips over the cut on his arm, and Geralt sends him a knowing smirk over the girl’s head. He knows his face is on fire, but he doesn’t think anyone else notices. He is definitely looking forward to exploring this feeling sometime soon.

**Author's Note:**

> Come Play with me on [Tumblr](https://kueble.tumblr.com/).


End file.
